As the Crow Flies Blog Hop and Giveaway

Hi Blogging Friends,

Mad for Markers is having a Blog Hop today to celebrate the As the Crow Flies NEW Release - There are some VERY cute images this release which are just a delight to colour in!

There is:

Pinwheel

Raindrop

Jessie

and

Icecream Boy

You can now buy these gorgeous 4 as well as the release from last month - Here!

 I coloured in Raindrop.  Isn't she a sweetie!!

If you came here from Melissa's blog then you are right on track.. If not please hop on over to the M4M Challenge blog to start at the very beginning!

Also a random blogger who comments on my post will receive this image for free courtesy of me! (Make sure you are a follower of my blog to win.)

Thanks for stopping today for this fun release of the new As the Crow Flies images... Your next stop is here and that is the end of the hop!

Thanks for playing along!

Alicia xx

Mad for Markers Multiliner Madness and Candy Winner

Hi Blogging Friends,

At Mad for Markers this month it is "Multiliner Madness".  That means to enter the challenge you need to use your Multi Liner in some way on your creation.  I chose to make a journal page.  I started with a piece of water colour paper and used a crayon to draw the flowers and border.  Then I painted over the top with pink water colour paint.  The crayon resisted the paint and showed through.  Then I used my 0.5mm Multi Liner and a thicker Sharpie texta to journal and doodle all over the page.  Then I matted the page on black card and pasted into my journal.  The thing I love about Art Journalling is that it is the process not the product that is important.  Art Journalling is all about having fun and going with the flow, getting out your thoughts and experimenting with colour, texture, lines etc.  Different to a card, that you hope will look "good" at the end, especially if you are making it to give to someone.  Art Journalling can be freeing, because it is just for yourself and no one has to see it if you dont feel like sharing.  I find it fun and refreshing and less structured than card making.

The inspiration for my journalling was two lovely friends I have been lucky enough to spend a couple of days with.  We taught together up on the Gold Coast a few years back and they flew to Newcastle this week to spend some time with me.  I had a lovely time catching up with these girls.  

And this is where we spent a lot of our time, hanging out at the pool at the Hotel they stayed at.  The weather was very hot.  So perfect laying by the pool weather (but in the shade as it was too hot!).   

And they met Nicholas for the first time.  He made them work extra hard for cuddles and smiles as the teeth were bothering him again.

Now quickly for the winner of my candy:

The lucky winner is Annette!!!
Congratulations Annette.  I will be in touch with you to let you know all about your win.
I hope to post more candy soon.  Thanks to everyone for entering.
Have a great weekend.
Alicia xx

Quick Card Candy

Hello Blogging Friends,

Here is some Quick Card Candy for you to enter!
These materials can help you whip up some quick little cards for family and friends.

The candy includes:

6 1/2 inch Kaisercraft "Rock Pool" Paper Pad
Kaisercraft Rock Pool Sea Friends Collectables
Kaisercraft Rock Pool Collectables
(That is two bags of different die cuts)
Cream flowers
Green Flowers
Pack of 100 3mm Clear Self Adhesive Rhinestones
Pack of 50 6mm Clear Self Adhesive Rhinestones

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment on this post and be a follower.

Thanks for entering and thanks for following my blog.

Alicia xx

Mad for Markers New Release and Exciting News

Hi Blogging Friends,

You may have noticed I missed my Tuesday post.  Unfortunately the day just came and went and so did the next day...Nicholas has been teething and I havent had much time to get anything done.  But the good news is we have had a day of relief and my Mum has come to stay for a few days so a few windows of time are occuring again.

This card above and the journal page below are using new digi images designed by Sammi at Mad for Markers.  They are so much fun to colour and have only just been released.  Check out how everyone else coloured them up here.

I had a lovely time colouring these up for Sammi.

I am really enjoying making the Journal pages...I am loving writing a bit more.  I bought a new journal yesterday from Kikki K.  Pages already coloured, for me to get down a lot of thoughts circulating in my head that I really want to record, but feel a bit time-limited at the moment.  I didnt want to be dictated by backgrounds and pictures, sometimes just writing and doodling is enough.

I am also very excited about some cards I will be making for my cousin who is a Naturopath and healer.  She has her own company in Bali and you can go there and do a fasting program to lose weight, or just cleanse your body and get healthy.  They have yoga and massage and healings for their clients to feel healthy again.  The company is called Natural Instinct Healing  and you can read all about it and watch a promo video here.  All their clients are going to receive a hand made b'day card from me! A bit exciting especially as some of the clients are very famous...but I am sworn to secrecy on who they are!!

Lastly here are some photos of our beautiful Nicholas and Honey chilling out on our bed.  He is really starting to communicate a bit more with the sounds that come out of his mouth...little laughs for "I like this" and little grunts and groans for "I dont".  We began solids this week as he is a big boy and becoming VERY interested in food.  He has had baby rice cereal and carrot so far...so far so good.  He loves animals and enjoys seeing Honey whenever she walks past.  Luckily so far she has been quite tolerant of his "pats".

Hope all is well with you this week.

Thanks for stopping by,

Alicia xx

Spring has Sprung at Mad for Markers

Hello Copic Lovers,

Well, this is exciting, because it is my first post back with the Mad for Markers team since I had my baby Nicholas and I guess you could say I have been on Maternity leave!

It has taken me five months to get back on track with my colouring and card-making since Nicholas was born.  The Challenge this month at Mad for Markers is to create a Spring inspired project using G and YG markers.  I have used a Some Odd Girl stamp called "Smell the flowers Tia"you can buy this stamp in Sammi's store here for $9.  I have created a journal page using water colour paints for the background.  I coloured the image with Copics using these colours:

Grass: YG03, G94, G99, G14, YG23

Skin: E11, E00, R20

Hair: R59, E37, YR23, Y21

Purples: V09, V06, V04

After making this journal page, I realised I have not used really that many YGs and Gs so I thought I should make another card that is purely green. So I made this one for my neighbour whose birthday it is this week.  He loves skating and skate boards.  This stamp is also available in Sammi's store here.

For this card I used 

G21, G17, G28, G14, G05, G85

YG03, YG11, YG41, YG06, YG03

and B93 for the outline.

Link up your G and YG colour creations to our challenge here.  

Here are some pictures of Nicholas.

Don't forget to enter my candy here.  Only a few days left to enter!!

Alicia xx

My Weekly Post

Hello Blogging Friends,

How has your week been??  Have you heard the song "Days go By" by Keith Urban??  It hit me this week as I was listening to that song and the lyrics finally made sense to me...the weeks are just flying by, life is going by so quickly.  If you have never heard the song you can watch and listen here.  I kind of wish life would slow down a little...  Keith says we better start living...  I often think about this.  Trying to enjoy life and make the best of it.  I have been so conscious since we had Nicholas to enjoy and treasure every moment.  He is five months old now and has brought us so much joy.  Life is different now... I have very little time to make cards or blog.  I used to have so much more time...but it is replaced with other beautiful things like snuggling up to Nicholas and watching him smile, giggle and grow (and cry!).  It has all been about getting to know his personality and trying to figure out the things he needs and what makes him feel safe and loved.  

In my quest for better organisation, and after much Pinterest research I have come up with this arrangement on my fridge.  From the left: a Weekly Meal Planner and Shopping List, A Daily Planner, A Weekly Planner and a Weekly Planner Job List for each day of the week.  This has been working well to keep me motivated in cooking dinners and cleaning the house.

Ooops! I have nearly forgotten to tell you about the cards at the top.  These were published.  A set of Ten Quick Cards.  They are actually little note cards and have been very handy in sending out little notes to family and friends.  Made using Kaisercraft Hummingbird papers and die cuts.

Lastly some pictures of Nicholas growing.
He can sit up in the bath now and splash.

We have bought him a toy he can sit in and bounce in and play with moving toys.  It takes batteries and makes noises and lights flash etc.  This is to assist me do a few little jobs around the house and to give him a bit of learning and fun.  He loves it for short time periods.

Lastly a photo of Nicholas and I playing around.  He loves to be held up in the air.  The teeth are still bothering him.  The two bottoms are making their way up, but it is now the top gums that seem to be causing him distress.

Well thats it from me for another week.  

See you again soon,

Alicia xx